Most area girls teams put together impressive district seasons

Jonathan Hull|Sports Writer

Published 7:10 pm, Sunday, March 11, 2012

Photo: Cindeka Nealy

Image 1of/1

Caption

Close

Image 1 of 1

Midland High's Sabrina Banks (40) looks up to attempt the shot for two as she's guarded by Odessa's LaTanya MacMarion (22) and Marie Dechant (42) earlier this year at Chaparral Center. Cindeka Nealy/Reporter-Telegram less

Midland High's Sabrina Banks (40) looks up to attempt the shot for two as she's guarded by Odessa's LaTanya MacMarion (22) and Marie Dechant (42) earlier this year at Chaparral Center. Cindeka ... more

Photo: Cindeka Nealy

Most area girls teams put together impressive district seasons

1 / 1

Back to Gallery

It was a banner year for girls basketball in the Tall City.

All six teams located in Midland County earned berths into the postseason and four even claimed at least a share of a district title.

And, while none of those teams made the deep postseason run that Midland High delivered in the 2010-2011 season, it's fair to say that each team in the county at least met the expectations placed upon it before the season began. Actually in most cases, expectations were surpassed.

Perhaps no team in the county embodies that statement more than Midland Classical. The Lady Knights won a mere four games last season and were held winless in district play.

What a difference a year can make. MCA ended up winning a share of the TAPPS 1-3A title with Amarillo San Jacinto and also won two playoff games before being eliminated from the TAPPS 3A state bracket.

But, the Lady Knights weren't the only team to surpass expectations. Midland High was a region tournament qualifier in 2011, but with the loss of an extremely talented senior class, some thought the Lady Bulldogs might be lucky to make the postseason.

Instead, MHS won a share of its third straight district title.

"Everybody said we graduated too heavy that we might just have a chance to make the playoffs and the cupboard was going to be bare," MHS coach Ron Berry said. "Other kids from other teams we play against were telling our girls during summer ball that this was their year and we couldn't get in the playoffs. We eventually became the district champions and proved everyone wrong."

Lee, meanwhile, managed to make the postseason for the second consecutive year, a feat that seemed far fetched just a few seasons ago.

"It means we're headed in the right direction," Lee coach Rosalind Lawrence said. "These are the foundational years of the program and we want to make sure the foundation is sturdy. The only place we can go is up and we've been continuously doing that."

Greenwood and Midland Christian entered the season with perhaps the greatest expectations of any Midland County squads with both appearing in the preseason rankings of its respective classification.

Greenwood had some tough early losses against quality competition that took it out of the rankings, but that didn't prevent the Rangerettes from winning their first district title since coach Quint Anthony took over the program four seasons ago.

Midland Christian, meanwhile, held onto its ranking despite playing in one of the most competitive TAPPS districts in the state. The Lady Mustangs finished third in the TAPPS 1-4A, and while they also fell in the opening round of the postseason, they still made great strides for a program that was in complete disarray just a few seasons ago.

And upon further review, this type of success across the board for Midland County girls basketball might once again become a common trend.

Midland High

The Lady Dawgs weren't supposed to be district champions. It was supposed to be someone else's turn to be at the top of the district. But Midland High carried on its tradition, and won its third straight district title, sharing the 3-5A crown with Odessa Permian. Midland High finished with a 19-15 record, losing to Arlington Martin, 60-54, in the opening round of the playoffs.

"It shows two things," first-year MHS coach Ron Berry said. "One, that the kids that graduated previously left a tradition that other girls coming up didn't want to break. They put that into their own play this year and it really showed.

"The second thing is that our kids had the heart of a champion. They weren't going to take anyone telling them they couldn't do it this year. Our seniors did a good job of leading with this attitude."

The Lady Dawgs lose leading scorer and 3-5A Offensive MVP Krystal Valdez and leading rebounder and 3-5A first-teamer Sabrina Banks to graduation, but return a young, but potentially potent stable of players for next season.

"I'm excited about it," Berry said. "This will be our first spring offseason together. We're going to be pretty young next year, probably younger than this year. That's not just a challenge, but a lot of fun leading a team that one really knows about."

Lee

Rosalind Lawrence is saying goodbye to her first group of seniors that she coached for all four years of their high school careers. Lawrence says it's a tough feeling, but she also relishes having gotten to witness a team that struggled to be competitive in games mature into one that made it to the postseason in back-to-back years.

"Every year I'm sad to see people go," Lawrence said. "These girls were freshmen when I got here. Seeing them transition and mature the way they did was a great experience for me. We came into this season wanting to finish and we felt like we did with making the playoffs again."

The Lady Rebels were knocked out of the first round of the playoffs with a 64-37 loss to North Crowley, ending their season with an 11-20 record. But, Lawrence continues to be optimistic about Lee's future.

"All you can do is look to the younger classmen to step up," Lawrence said. "We've got some experienced girls coming back and some good players coming up."

Greenwood

The Rangerettes are going to have a tough time not asking the question, "What might have been?" Greenwood fielded its strongest team in several seasons, but couldn't stay healthy.

"It was one of those years every coach goes through at some point in their career," Rangerettes coach Quint Anthony said. "We had more injuries that I've ever had in my previous four seasons at Greenwood. Not one girl on the team played in every game this year. With all of that being said, it was still a great season."

The Rangerettes won a district title, but getting past the area round proved difficult for them once again with a loss to Dalhart. But, they did have to play without leading scorer Peyton Pyle.

"This was a season where I will think about how things would have been if we didn't have all the injuries," Anthony said. "We were really starting to peak in district play and those things really took us off track."

The Rangerettes now say good-bye to a stellar senior class which includes Pyle and District 4-3A Most Valuable Player Alyssa Anthony. However, some key pieces do return, including Ashton Hannsz, who handled point guard duties when Anthony was injured, and Courtney Waters and Amanda Bell, who turned into valuable scoring options late in the year.

"It's not as much about replacing those girls as it is finding the right roles for the next group coming in," Quint Anthony said. "I do think we have a talented group coming back next year and we'll be competitive."

Midland Christian

Midland Christian was ranked in the TABC Top 25 from start to finish this past season. The Lady Mustangs rode the presence of senior post Whitney Rogers on the floor, while fellow senior Lindzey Roach provided the needed leadership in the backcourt that propelled MCS back into the postseason for a second straight year.

Replacing the leadership Rogers and Roach showed is key, but sophomore point guard Morgan Ashton -- an all-state selection -- will be back again and should help fill that void. Beyond Rogers and Roach, though, the Lady Mustangs lose several more seniors that will affect their depth. The next round of Lady Mustangs must be ready to step up for their recent run of success to continue.

Midland Classical

The Lady Knights went from being a four-win team to co-district champions. It was an incredible improvement with sophomore Kayla Beattie leading the charge on the scoring end, while junior Karis Johnson provided both energy and a vital presence on the glass rebounding.

The future looks bright for MCA, which should be one of the favorites to push for a TAPPS 1-3A state title next season, considering the Lady Knights return every player but one -- senior Hannah Bailey -- from this team. There should be a few more banners being hung in the MCA gym over the next two seasons.

Trinity

The Lady Chargers won the TCAF state title last season, and threatened to make a repeat performance despite losing all five starters from the state championship team.

A young Trinity team gelled late in the year, but couldn't quite put it all together to repeat as state champions. The Lady Chargers move into TAPPS 1-3A next season, and will play in a competitive district with Midland Classical, Amarillo San Jacinto, Amarillo Arbor and Lubbock Christian.

It will be interesting to see how well the Lady Chargers deal with a significant increase in competition.

Around the area

Four more teams in the MRT coverage area also enjoyed a prolonged season with playoff appearances. Garden City appeared to be bound for the regional tournament after winning District 12-A, Division II. But, a 37-36 upset loss to Wink cut that bid short for the Lady Bearkats. Garden City loses just three players from this 27-7 squad, though, and there could be a regional tournament in its immediate future.

Big Spring was the third seed coming out of the challenging District 5-3A which featured two-time Class 3A state champion Abilene Wylie. The Lady Steers, who lost in the area round of the playoffs, are losing a very strong senior class, and have a lot of holes to fill in what will be a challenging District 4-3A next season.

Andrews had similar success to what its rival Big Spring did. The Lady Mustangs won their first-round playoff game against Pecos, 43-22, but couldn't get past Perryton in the area round. The Lady Mustangs also lose several key players, including District 4-3A Defensive MVP Rayna Diaz. They also have to contend moving north into District 2-3A next season, which is traditionally much stronger in girls basketball.

Grady also made its traditional trip into the postseason, but couldn't get out of the first round with a 51-33 loss to New Home.